Revell Sopwith Camel and SPAD XIII. 1:28

[Shar2]

Sopwith Camel and SPAD XIII

Revel 1/28

The Models

Both of these kits date back to the late fifties, the SPAD from 1957 and the Camel from 1959, and boy does it show on opening the flaps of the end opening boxes. The open sprues give the game away straight away and the rather crude moulding. That said though, the details are quite well done although the wing ribs are a little prominent on both kits and could do with sanding down a bit. There is quite a lot of flash present, but not as much as the age of the moulds might suggest, they have obviously been stored well.

SPAD

There aren’t too many parts and both follow a similar order of build. The engines are quite nicely detailed with the cooling fins looking really rather good. Add to that the push rods etc and they will make nice representations. The scale of these kits will make them a nice size to work with and with a fair amount of patience, care and probably some filler they will look good in a display case. They also give the modeller a chance to scratch build a lot of detail should they wish to really go to town on them. The figures provided are very basic and could do with some resculpting, but they will add a bit of interest to the final display. The kits come with either black or white thread, or in the case of the Camel, both, for the rigging, which even in this scale looks a little too large, and quite fluffy, so you may wish to replace them with suitable modelling rigging line or fishing line.

Camel

Decals

Each kit comes with a nicely printed decal sheet, being in register, nicely opaque and with very little carrier film. The roundels on the Camel sheet have some sort of texturing on them, making them look a little rough. Both sheets have been printed in the Czech Republic and are quite matt so will probably need a good setting and soaking solution to get them to bed down properly.

The kits come with the option of two colour schemes:-

• Sopwith Camel of No.10 squadron, RNAS, based at Teteghem, France, March 1918
• Sopwith Camel of No.45 squadron, RFC, based at Istrana, Italy, early 1918

• SPAD XIII Ser.No. S.7714, flown by Capt R. Soubrian, of the 103rd Aero Squadron, 3rd Pursuit Group, USAS, based at Lisle-en-Barrois, France November 1918
• SPAD XIII, Ser.No.7799, flown by 1/Lt Long, 93rd Aero Squadron, 3rd Pursuit Group, USAS, France, October 1918.

Conclusion

If you take into account the age of these kits before you buy them you won’t be shocked at what you find in the box. I’m sure they can and will provide many hours of enjoyment for those that have to have a larger scale model of these aircraft in their collection. They are not as basic as some models from that era, and they do have potential for more detail to be added, so if you fancy a challenge, or trip back down memory lane then they could be just for you.

Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit

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[hacker]

These are great kits to build and I have seen some great models built from them. Like you said with a little patience, time and scratch building you can make some great builds. The only sad thing about the current line is the fact their Fokker D VII has serious flaws with it. It is also to bad that they did not do the Albatros and the S.E.5 to round out the line

[Epeeman]

I have both of these re-issue kits and am currently building the Camel.

I have built both these (and the others in the range) previously and would like to add that for the age of the kits, basic detail is good (and as you say, provide good 'canvass' for some modest detailing work) and they all fit together extremely well. The supplied decals are also very good and easy to work with.

Yes, there are some accuracy issues, but with a small amount of effort you end up with a nice, large display model. If you are into WW1 aircraft, these are seriously worth a go.

Regards

Dave